Loose Ends
by ZombieReader74
Summary: The Courier seeks to tie up the loose ends of his adventures all those years ago.
1. Loose Ends: Veronica

Veronica sat on her knees outside the ruins of the Brotherhood Bunker in Hidden Valley silently struggling to hold back tears. Under her lay the bodies of the only family she ever knew and she had to live with the guilt of knowing their demise was her fault. It was weeks ago but she remembered like it was yesterday. She was sad, vulnerable and alone in the 188 and was looking for purpose outside the Brotherhood. Then _he _came into her life like a wrecking ball and lied through his crooked fucking teeth. She kicked herself every day for letting herself fall under his influence. Stories of his brutality already flooded the Wastes; forming The Divide, slaughtering Goodsprings and fighting off a NCR assault on the Powder Gangers just to name a few. When she saw him however he knew just what to say to make her believe that the stories were just blown out of proportion. She had her doubts but when he got her that dress just like he asked….she felt stupid for ever trusting him. Every time he did something evil he would immediately have an excuse "For the greater good" was his favorite. She heard someone step on a twig behind her and leapt to her feet. In front of her stood the distinct profile of The Terror of the Wastes, Crusher of Enemies and Slayer of Civilizations...the Courier.

"I knew I would find you here." he said tenderly

"Shut the fuck up monster!" Veronica shouted at him. He stopped a few dozen feet from her and put his hands in the pocket of his duster. On the back was a blood stain allegedly from when he decapitated Mr House with a straight razor. He chuckled.

"You always were a fierce one." he said

"Leave me alone! Please, what else can you take from me!" Veronica asked angrily, her voice breaking as she did.

"I...i'm dying Veronica. Got hit during a duel with a NCR Ranger a few days back. Its infected and...im not gonna make it. I just want to...I don't know." the Courier said sadly. Vernoica eased a fraction as he fell to his knees.

"I look back on my life and what do I have to be proud of? I have no friends, no family, nothing but empty power." he said. Veronica gulped.

"I-I-I don't believe you." she said

"I'm not asking for you to. Hell, I don't know what I am asking you. Just...i dont know. Im so sorry." he said "For everything."

"So? I don't forgive you. Leave." Veronica said

"And go where? Vegas? For what? To have Sal kiss my ass some more? I just want someone to tell me I was wrong." the Courier said. He sat on his butt and put his arms around his knees. He looked almost...pathetic.

"You _were _wrong Courier! You saved Vegas by drowning it in blood. Everywhere you went Death followed close behind! Your worse than Caesar or Legate Lanius could have ever hoped to be." Veronica said as sadness was replaced by anger.

"Sometimes at night I lay in bed and look at Lanius's mask and see my own reflection in the polished metal. This is not how I wanted things to end Veronica you gotta believe me! I wanted what I thought was best! War is messy and I wasn't helping matters. Thats why...thats why I think I am here. Im dying and I want you to take over Vegas after me." he said

"M-me?"

"Yes. Your the sweetest, purest, ball of joy this Waste has seen in a long time. Get the old gang back together and save Vegas from wallowing in its own filth. Do what I couldn't." The Courier asked. Veronica finally let her powerfists fall to her sides as she walked towards the Courier and sat next to him. There was a small silence before the Courier spoke again.

"I regret what I made you do to your family. At the time they seemed like such a threat but...well I guess its to late for buts." he said quietly as he looked at the ruins in front of them.

Veronica sighed and nodded. Then in an instant she brought up her powerfist to block a swipe of a knife. She looked over to see the Courier sitting next to her, smiling as he stared at her scared expression.

"Clever girl." he said silently. He then lunged at Veronica and pushed her onto her back as she began to cry out in fear.

"What? No! Please no! What about what you just said?" she asked as the Courier pinned her to the ground. He laughed the familiar evil laugh that turned blood ice cold from Shady Sands to Two Sun.

"You really fucking believed that? God I thought you were smarter than that Vee. The NCR hasn't sent a Ranger this far West in a decade and even if they did do you _really_ think I would duel them? This isn't a fucking Old World holodisk you dumb slut!" he said.

In a burst of adrenaline Veronica pulled up a arm and slammed a powerfist into the Courier's face. There was a sickening crack as the Courier tumbled off her and to the left a few feet by the hit. Veronica panted as she shakily rose to her feet and observed the unmoving body of the Courier. Was...was it over?

Her question was answered when the Courier's laugh assaulted her ears once more and he got to his feet. He cracked his jaw back into place and looked hungrily at Veronica's terrified face.

"The Big MT changed me Vee, i'll never die!" he said with a demonic smile. He quickly pulled a .50 pistol and opened fire on her. Veronica dashed away, zig zagging to keep him from focusing his aim. She hadn't got forty feet however before a shooting pain shot through her leg and lower half and she fell to the ground. She screamed and grasped at her leg to find a large hole where her femur once was. She began to hyperventilate as he calmly approached her, his smile dying into the cold calculation of his mind.

"W-What did I ever do to you?" Vee asked as her life began to flash before her eyes "I agreed to leave New Vegas after Hoover Dam! I haven't done anything to challenge you for years! Please tell me!"

She looked up at the Courier as he holstered his gun and knelt next to her "You lived." he said simply

Veronica then watched him pull out a large Bowie knife and plunge it into her throat. She tried to scream but nothing came out but air and blood as both began to fill her throat. The Courier watched emotionless as Vee flailed her arms around for a second before gripping the knife and began to tug at it. The Courier shushed her with a slight smirk and removed her hands from the knife.

"You take it out it'll only make it worse." he said. He then lit a cigar and laid next to her and watched the sky above him. Vee looked at him panicked, thousands of thoughts rushing through her dying brain as the last synapses fired for the last time as finally the last of her lifeblood flooded out of the wound and onto the ground. She lay still as the Courier finished his cigar and flicked it onto her body. He left without another word as the coyotes howled in the distance.


	2. Loose Ends: Arcade

Arcade walked slowly towards Jacobstown keeping a close eye on the sky above him. His family power armor clanked and clinked as he walked. Slung across his back was his trusty plasma rifle he named Vengeance. It was a tad dramatic he knew but he also saw himself as dramatic so he thought it fit. He idly wondered what the Remnants were doing at this moment, probably out hunting him. He felt a twinge of sadness as he thought back to that day in the bunker. He was so angry when the Courier told him his plan that he stormed out in a huff, leaving that monster with his friends and family. Maybe if he hadn't left in such a hurry he could have killed that monster right there. The Remnants were more loyal to him then the Courier so if he pulled his pistol and started shooting they probably would have instinctively supported him. A voice in the back of his head urged him to go back to the bunker to reason with his friends. Maybe he could get through to them and turn them against the Courier and free the Mojave from its new dictator. However just as fast as he considered it the suggestion was dismissed, last time he tried that the only reason he got out alive was because the Remnants let him. He will always remember the only thing they said after his long speech.

"Out of respect for your father you have half an hour to go as far from here as you can before we attack."

Their faces were so stone cold, any humanity his friends once had had long been stamped out by the Courier. Arcade silently thanked himself for sealing the bunker, forcing the Remnants to relocate, saving Jacobstown. Resistance to the Courier had coalesced in Jacobstown soon after Securitrons began to roll off the Strip. They had grown to a respectable number, about fifty civilians and a few dozen full time guards. They came from all walks of life, from former Van Graff guards to the few survivors of the Mormon Fort Shootout. Before the Courier they wouldn't be caught dead working with each other but circumstances have forced them together. Bolstered by the remnants of the failed Super Mutant community the Courier has been hesitant to assault them outside of an occasional probing attack, letting them dig in. However Arcade and the other leaders of the community knew that it was only a matter of time before the Securitrons came charging up the road. Many are arguing for packing up and fleeing the Mojave. Where to they don't say and Arcade suspected that they didn't have a plan, they are just desperate to escape. He couldn't blame them. He thought over the option more than he could admit but always came to the same conclusion, he had to clean up his own mess. As he approached the mouth of the road up to Jacobstown he was met with a pair of sandbagged barricades manned by a ghoul named Beatrix and a man named Simon. When they saw Arcade approaching they reached for their guns instinctively before relaxing back into their chairs.

"Marcus wants to talk to you. He seemed pretty peeved." Beatrix said as she pulled a loose cigarette from her pocket and struck a match to light it

"Do...do you have random cigs in your pockets?" Simon asked

"Yeah. One of my packs split open during a raid a few days back and I haven't finished them off yet so..." she said while Arcade walked past them wordlessly

"Huh. Pass me one?" Simon asked. Beatrix sighed as she flicked him a fresh cig from her pocket and a match to light it.

The rest of the walk to Jacobstown was uneventful, he ran into Beatrix and Simon's relief guards making their way down the road. One of them still had bandages over his wound from one of the recent raids. Arcade idly wondered if the wound was infected but as the group passed by wordlessly he turned his attention away from them. When he finally reached the gates of Jacobstown he was met by the imposing figure of Marcus, a super mutant who was one of the original residents of this place and who helped him build up the resistance. He looked angry as he marched up to Arcade.

"Gannon! Where have you been?" he asked

"Scouting as per usual. Saw the Courier hop in the Enclave bird and fly off to the North out of Freeside. Lost him flying towards Nellis. Heard some explosions soon after, seems like he finally went to finish off the Boomers. Why? Something happen while I was away?" Arcade asked as he walked into town with Marcus close behind him.

"Shame about the Boomers, hope they hold out. Last I heard they had dealt him a big black eye a few weeks back. If they survive we should make contact with them. Anyway, yes something happened. A patrol near Ruby Hill Mine captured a former merc hired by the Courier. Sung like a songbird about a attack supposed to happen in the next few days." Marcus said. Arcade stopped and turned to Marcus.

"A Courier merc? This far north? Don't you think that's a bit, I don't know, suspicious?" Arcade asked

"Said He hasn't been paying mercs for a few weeks now and just recently he was part of a mass desertion to NCR territory. Courier rounded most of the others up and as far as he knows he is the only one of the group left." Marcus said "Nevertheless we have him holed up in Charleston Cave under 24 hr super mutant guard."

"He hasn't been paying his guns in a few weeks huh. The banks on the Strip must be going bust finally. Ok, lets go talk to this guy." Arcade said. He and Marcus walked towards Charleston Cave and were let in by the guards. Inside they found the merc sitting near a small fire cooking a can of beans. He had a lot of bruises and injuries and was missing a few fingers on his left hand. He looked up at Marcus and Arcade with a gleam of fear and began to slowly crawl backwards against the cave wall.

"Y-your one of those Enclave fucks! Get away from me! I...I-" the merc began but was cut off by Arcade who got on one knee, removed his helmet and put it on the ground

"Don't worry, im one of the good ones. Tell me about the Courier, his plans for this place." Arcade said

After a moment of silence the man got a hair closer and took a deep breath "I had been to the Strip a few times before the Courier took over running missions for a NCR Baron or something. Back then it was fun ya know, somewhere you'd want to go. Now...now it aint. The Omerta's gas attack on the Embassy left that whole rear part of the Strip behind the Ultra-Luxe uninhabitable. NCR corpses, or what remain of them, are baking in the sun. Smells like shit Courier says its a example to show what happens what happens when you fuck with him."

"Good god." Arcade said silently

"Oh God ain't got no place on the Strip, even more so than before. Those white mask freaks abduct the troublemakers, some say to eat and serve at their Exclusive Feasts for the Courier and the Families upper brass. I don't know if I believe that but still, when your called to the Luxe you don't come back. The Gomorrah is full of orgys and vice for vices sake. People who OD are disposed of, don't know what happens to them. The only half decent place is the Tops but even then if you go into gamble and you win the Chairmen take out back and executes you. And the Lucky 38….goddamn the 38. Shits a nightmare, more so than anywhere on the Strip. The Courier is the only person allowed in and if he calls you in your tortured until you die, then he uses some freaky science shit to turn you into what he calls a 'Lobo-to-meet' I think. That's why he stopped paying us, so we would try and bolt and be scooped into a Lobo." the man said

"He is lobotomizing mercs?" Arcade said, hardly believing it

"Totally obedient, fanatical to their masters, bullet sponges, a good way to fill the ranks while his Securitrons are produced." Marcus reasoned "Still barbaric."

"Speaking of which where are the Securitrons, the big robots, coming from?" Arcade asked

"Dunno, they just kinda appear. One second they aren't there, then there's this weird blue beam hits the 38 and then boom, a whole new batch of them are rolling out of there." he man said

"Last question then you can get outta here. When is the Courier coming?" Arcade asked

The man opened his mouth to speak when there was a loud _chopchopchopchop_ from outside and screaming, soon followed by the sounds of gatling lasers and gunfire.

"Fuck!" Arcade shouted as he rose to his feet and put on his helmet. He unslung his gun and ran out of the cave to see a vertibird with a big E on it idling in the courtyard. Power Armored soldiers poured out of the thing, about six as far as Arcade could see, and opened fire on all around them with gatling lasers. Arcade and Marcus charged down to the battle and began to fire at the enemy. Around him men, women and children screamed as they were shot and injured or mercifully, killed. However it seemed to be for nothing as the soldiers continued to fire wildly into the civilians and guards around them. Then Arcade heard a explosion come from the gates and turned to see them fly open and a mass of Securitrons and lobotomites pour in. Arcade looked from the gate battle to the Vertibird soldiers and realized that the battle was lost. Jacobstown was as good as fallen. A part of him wanted to go down with the rest of his friends but ultimately he regretfully pulled out a Stealth Boy and put it on, cloaking him as he snuck into a secluded crevice where he could hide and wait for the shooting to stop.

Arcade sat there for what seemed like hours, agonizing sa he listened to the dying screams of all his new friends and family. Finally however, mercifully it stopped and all that could be heard was the dull whurr of the Securitron and Vertibird engines complimented by the dull clinking of Enclave power armor. Then, he heard Him.

"Arcade? Where is Arcade...Find him then!" he said in a furious tone. He then heard a crack as the door to the Lodge was kicked down. There was more screaming, this time more muffled, as the last few survivors were hunted down and exterminated in the building. Meanwhile he heard another voice he almost didn't recognize.

"D-dearie, why did you hurt grandma?" she asked, her sweet voice growing and decreasing in strength as she bordered on death.

"I don't want Lily! Give me Leo!" he heard the Courier shout, then he heard a dull thud as boot connected with skin.

"M...Master." the voice had changed into a lower and more gravelly tone.

"Good. Yes Man!" Courier shouted.

"Yes sir." A unexpectedly cheery voice responded

"Take this beast to the Mountain. See if they can make it into a Lobo. If not then have her fed to the dogs like the rest of the impure vermin." he said

Next Arcade heard the dragging of a body as heavy steps approached his hiding area. Arcade readied his weapon as the imposing figure of a power armored body grew over him. Arcade looked up to find the figure staring at him. After a moment of silence he heard Johnson speak.

"Stay outta sight kid." he then turned and walked off. There was some muttering before the Courier spoke again.

"Hmph, guess he's gone then. Burn the lodge and leave the rest." before Arcade heard and saw the Vertibird take off and fly away. He stayed in his hiding spot for the next few hours to be sure nobody was there. Then, he cried.


	3. Loose Ends: Cass

Cass walked a few feet ahead of the caravan as it made its way towards the ruined Mojave Outpost a beacon of light in the Mojave darkness. The road up the large hill where the last toehold of the NCR sat was one fraught with danger and traps set by retreating NCR soldiers all those years ago. Yet many still brave the dangers in order to escape the hell that is the Mojave Wasteland. Cass secretly suspected that's what their merchants intended to do when they crossed into NCR territory. She didn't blame them even though she did look down on them for fleeing. She heard of some sort of resistance taking root in the northwest, but she also heard that Courier already dealt with them. Cass came back to the real world when she heard someone in the caravan start to shout.

"What the fuck is that?!"

Cass turned behind her to see a reptile looking, human looking thing with dark, scaly skin, and large glowing eyes coming out of a hole in the ground. It opened its mouth and showed it to be filled with sharp reptilian teeth as Cass warily eyed the spikes protruding from its shoulders and head. It let out a sharp hissing sound as it scurried out of the small hole and towards them on all fours. Cass unslung her shotgun and moved between the thing and her caravan. As it approached she fired a round into its face, the impact throwing it onto its back. However just as soon as it hit the ground it was already getting back up. Cass reached towards her hip and pulled her flare gun and fired it at the beast. It recoiled from the light and fled back to its hole. Cass chambered another flare and returned her guns to their holsters.

"What the fuck was that?" said one of the caravaners as Cass started walking towards the Outpost.

"First time travelling the Long 15?" Cass asked

"Yeah, took this job to get outta here," the same man said as he began to follow her

"Smart. That was a tunneler. Those mutie bastards came from the Divide last I heard, started popping up in the Mojave a few years back. Not to tough one-on-one but you'll rarely see them like that. Usually they travel in packs that can take down a Deathclaw. So far only seen them near the Outpost but I don't think for a moment they will stay here. When they aren't eating they must be fucking because there are _always _more of them out there. As long as you got a half decent guard they won't be to much of a bother. Usually only active in the dark to so if you want to avoid them travel by day and sleep somewhere high," Cass said

"Tunnelers...hmph, the Wasteland gets worse and worse by the day," another caravanner spoke up

"You got that right," Cass responded

After a moment the first caravanner asked "Why don't you leave?"

Cass was silent at that question since she didn't really have an answer. Instead she focused on the road ahead. As they reached the crest of the hill they came upon a large wall made from scrap and reinforced with a few sandbags. The scrap was repurposed from the giant statue that once stood in front of the Outpost. After the Rain of Fire razed the Long 15 and the Couriers Army pushed the NCR off the Dam the suddenly populated Outpost had to get creative in conducting a holding action so the rest of the NCR Army could escape. That was going on a decade ago. It's become clear to the few unlucky souls still at the Outpost that they are at best the last toehold of civilization in a barbaric world and at worst, left to die in a land that doesn't want them by a government that doesn't care about them. As the caravan approached the wall the small wooden gate over the road swung open and a NCR soldier in ratty, tattered clothes appeared before her. He held his rifle in one hand at his side, she noticed it didn't have a clip.

"Hey Cass, next caravan goes through in about a hour or so," the man said

"Thanks Hsu," Cass said as she brushed past him soon followed by the caravan itself. The Outpost was largely abandoned save for a few NCR troopers sandwiched between two walls. One protecting the Outpost from attacks by the Courier and the other to keep it from being attacked from the monsters of the Divide. Getting through the Long 15 had turned into a ordeal that requires armed NCR soldiers or damn good guards. Pretty obvious why the Outpost is critically undersupplied. Some of the soldiers have taken to calling this The Pen, holding the human brahmin until their eventual slaughter. Cass couldn't really argue with that feeling, she thought to herself that she wouldn't feel any differently if she was in their shoes. As the merchants and guards dispersed to kill time Cass walked into the rec room she used to frequent and sat on her old stool. It was here she first met the Courier and was manipulated by him to serve his own assholish goals. Killing the Van Graffs and Crimson Caravan wasn't to help her get closure it was to cripple the NCR supply lines in the Mojave. He didn't give a shit about her, she knew that as soon as he dropped her back at the Outpost when he was done with her. She was here after the Dam, and she hated herself for not sniping that bastard when she had the chance.

The once lively building lay empty, its shelves long looted by the garrison for supplies. Cass pulled a small bottle of whiskey from her satchel and uncorked it. One sip turned into ten and the hour flew by. Seemingly to soon Cass suddenly found herself a bit woozy and confronted by Hsu, trying to shake her from her stupor.

Cass your needed outside urgently" he shouted. Cass blinked a few times before rising shakily to her feet. She stumbled out of the rec room and saw a familiar face standing over the disarmed NCR troops and caravan guards flanked by a few mercs and Securitrons. He turned to Cass and smiled.

"Keep the lowlifes down. I gotta speak to Rose." the Courier said to his minions who nodded silently. He walked over to her and held his arms open.

"Cass! What are you doing here in this dump? Jeez if I didn't know any better I'd think your trying to get outta here." he said with a smile. Where she once saw warmth and comfort now she only saw coldness and sadism. She unholstered her shotgun and pointed it at the Courier, making him stop, hands now raised.

"What's it to you if I am" she asked. The Courier looked genuinely surprised which puzzled Cass. Did he really not think what he did was wrong? "I heard what you did to Veronica, that ain't happening to me"

"Whoah, you have no proof I killed Veronica." the Courier said, eyes still fixed at the gun pointed at his stomach

"Who else would? The NCR? Don't play dipshit, I know you're smarter than that." Cass responded

"Okay fine, I killed her. But she was going stir crazy about how _she _blew up Hidden Valley. It was a mercy killing if anything" the Courier reasoned

"Bullshit! I knew Vee just as well as you did we both know she wouldn't have blown Hidden Valley if you didn't all but force her to." Cass argued. The Courier simply shrugged dismissively

"Look Cass, we can debate how 'bad' I was until you're blue in the face but let's get to the real meat and bones of why i'm here. I need a...female face to help with the PR side of my regime and to give me an heir. For everything Big Empty can and does do for me I won't live forever. Without becoming one of those damn brains in a jar at least. I need someone to continue the safety and independence of the Mojave. I need a queen." the Courier said. As he finished Cass caught a faint smile on the edges of his mouth.

"And you want that to be me? After everything you've done how can you think I would want to marry you, much less fuck you?"

The Courier laughed at that which only confused Cass more "I am not giving you a choice Cass, besides I don't need you to fuck me. The Big Empty just needs a single fleck of your DNA, a single skin flake and then i'll have as much of you as I need to make the perfect successor. Then you can go free, along with your friends," he said as he motioned back to the men on their knees behind him.

Cass shot them a glance and saw they looked terrified. They just wanted to get outta this alive. All he wanted was a single sliver of skin. That's not that bad she reasoned. Cass sighed and holstered her shotgun, wordlessly surrendering. The Courier smiled and turned to one of the mercs accompanying the Securitrons.

"You, dumb-dumbs, restrain her hands so she doesn't try something on the way back." he said. That's when she saw one of the mercs face her and revealed he had a large scar on his head and a vacant look in his eyes. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small thicket of rope and walked over to her soon followed by the other four.

"Hey! What's the deal here? I thought you just needed a sliver of skin or something?" Cass said as she began to reach for her gun once more

"How would I cut it? With a gun? Besides even if I had a knife precise enough for the operation its to dirty here," The Courier said as he turned to walk back to Vegas. He took a few steps before stopping and turning back to the Securitron "Knock those bastards out and get them tied up to then take them back to Vegas. I need more hostages for the NCR," The Courier returned to walking as Cass was restrained and led out of the Outpost. The dull thud of the unconscious bodies hitting the ground was the last sound to be heard in that cursed place.


	4. Loose Ends: Boone

Boone sat on a bed in one of the ruined buildings in Freeside. He watched as across the street scavengers were unloading something from the Kings's former home. Boone remembered his days back in the NCR where he kept hearing his superiors bitch and moan about them. How they kept harassing NCR citizens and they couldn't do shit about it. Then one day some random asshole off the street comes in, and seemingly fixes a lot of the problems between the Kings and the so called 'Squatters'. Boone knew that random asshole and even grew to like him a fair bit. He seemed to want to make the Wasteland not so much a waste. He not only killed House but all Caesar and everyone at the Fort. Boone wished he went with him on that mission, what he would've given to see Caesar's face when he saw one guy mow down the best of his petty Legion. If only he could see what happened next. Boone sighed and reached for his rifle, it was old, probably older than him. Just like him though it worked through its age and seemed to never want to stop. He walked over to the window and opened it a bit allowing him to rest the barrel on the windowsill as he aimed.

_Pap pap pap_ and the scavvers went running. Two fell over and stopped moving and one grabbed his arm and yelled in pain as he ran off.

"_Damn, must be slipping._" Boone told himself. He returned his rifle to its resting place and walked over to the small stove in the far corner of his room. It was old and barely worked but the Courier flooded New Vegas with electricity and he was able to harness a tad bit of it to use in the stove. It wasn't much but it was a lot better than humping it in the bush. Many were to scared of the Courier's watchful eye to live this close to Vegas, assuming they weren't in the inner circle at least. However Boone found a weird sort of comfort in it. He wasn't sure if the Courier even knew he was here but the safety of his presence was oddly pleasant. Nothing could kill him here. Of course Boone hated that rat bastard with every fiber of his being he just wasn't sure if he could fight _another _tinpot despot. He had been fighting for so long, his body deserved its rest. Boone reached into the oven and pulled out a radsteak and slapped it onto one of the fryers. He turned a crank and heard the oven rattle to life. He walked back to the window and stared out of it into the almost deserted streets below. He watched the injured scavver return to the scene and look around for what shot him. After finding nothing he returned to looting the former Kings HQ. Boone sighed and went to get his rifle again but he suddenly heard the old gates of Freeside rattle open. Boone's ears seemingly perked up as the Courier, flanked by Securitrons and Mercs began to walk through Freeside towards Vegas. Behind him he had a few NCR soldiers tied up and walking with their heads down.

"_Did the NCR try another offensive?_" Boone asked himself. He watched the column walk by and began to move away from the window to avoid detection when he saw a familiar shape. Was that...Cass? Boone quickly retrieved his rifle and focused his scope on the female at the far end of the line. She was a bit roughed up and looked defeated in most every way, but all in all seemed okay. He trained his reticle on her face and waited for her to move her face so he could see it more clearly. He got his wish when she sneezed and raised her head for a moment, just long enough for him to see her face. It was Cass. Boone thought she was already gone or...worse. Boone suddenly felt conflicted. Should he try and free her? The mercs guarding her would be no trouble but those Securitrons were going to be a problem. Those things took a whole clip to take down on a good day. Boone returned his rifle to his resting place and instead watched the Courier walk by. For a fleeting moment he seemed to lock eyes with Cass, whose glare shamed him from the window. Boone looked down to avoid her angry glare, ashamed at what he had become. He could hear her bitching at him now like she did all those years ago and he deserved it. Suddenly he found himself glancing at his rifle once more but thought better of it; this was not his fight, not now and not ever. Instead he walked back to his bed and reached for a book he found titled _Lord of the Rings_. It was supposedly a Old World classic and while he wasn't the best reader the few illustrations in the book were entertaining.

As he read however a sound from outside suddenly caught his ears. "_Shhhut up you fucgin asshole!_"

Boone rushed to the window and saw the Courier had stopped and a man in a distinctive set of power armor faced him, a bottle hanging loosely from his right hand and a laser pistol from his left.

"Arcade? How'd you get into Vegas? Also, why is _he still alive_!?" The Courier shouted at nobody in particular

"You killed my family, now I will kill you." Arcade said. Boone noticed a sway in his movements. Was he...drunk?

"Oh yeah? You're not the first man to try this. Go ahead, take your best shot," the Courier dared. Arcade rose his pistol and fired three times, each shot missing the Courier by hairs. "You done now? Good. My turn." and the Securitrons went to attack. Before a single bullet flew at Arcade however there was a sharp _crack _of a rifle. The side of one mercs head suddenly exploded and the corpse tumbled to the ground. Then another _crack _dropped another merc and the Courier swung around and spotted Boone fleeing from the window. Boone burst through the door to his apartment as he heard a loud _fwoosh_ and suddenly the window exploded, blowing a hole in the wall where the window once was. Boone dashed down the hall to another abandoned room and to that rooms window. He peeked down to see himself now looking from behind Arcade who was still standing there as if nothing had just happened. The Courier however was turning to his Securitrons.

"Three of you go empty that building! Get rid of the corpses somewhere so they don't stink the place up any more than it already is. The rest of you kill the grunts and take Arcade and Cass to the 36, I gotta make sure this is done," he said as he pulled a shiny revolver from a side holster. Boone instantly recognized it, that damned Sequoya had killed more men than Caesar ever had. Boone then watched two Securitrons and a merc rush off to the building he was currently inside. Boone frantically began to think of a way out as the few NCR grunts trailing the Courier's convoy were executed, their frantic begging cut short. His mind was racing as he heard the wooden door on the bottom floor burst open. Before he knew it a merc with a scars racing across his bald head like puzzle pieces was on his floor. Boone carefully crawled to the doorframe and peeked out and saw a merc break down a door on the far end of the hall. He had five more on each side before he got to him so he hopefully had some time. However as Boone creeped back to the window a floorboard creaked and he heard everything go silent. Then Boone heard the merc walking down the hall towards his room. He looked around and realized he had forgotten his fucking rifle in his room. He silently cursed as the merc got closer and then peered into the room. It saw nothing but one of its remaining senses, was it its gut; told him something was in there. He took one cautious step into the room, then another and then a third. As it began to take a fourth Boone lunged from his hiding place against the left wall and lodged a steak knife into its chest. There was another moment of silence as the merc turned to him with a feral and angry look on its face.

"_What the-_" Boone began to wonder when he was cut short. The man, who had amazing strength for his outward appearance shoved Boone back against the wall and made a primal grunt before lunging at Boone. Boone struggled to hold him back while also simultaneously trying to get his knife out of the things chest. Whatever it was it was no longer human Boone could tell. In the scuffle Boone found himself pinning the man to the ground and raised his fist to begin beating him when a metal claw clamped on his hand. Then, there was the powdering of bone, blinding pain, and cold blackness.

Authors Note: A bit late on this one, I feel an explanation is owed. I hit a bit of writers block when writing this. I re-wrote this entirely at least four times and minor another dozen or so at least. However after much trials and tribulations its here! Hope you like it.


End file.
